Search results for: BIOLOGICAL PROCESSES
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What defines excellent lighting design for humans and animals?
PublicationWhat defines excellent lighting design for humans and animals? The answer to the above question is more than complex. It is not enough nowadays to design a project to make it aesthetically pleasing. Nor is it sufficient to create nicely lit environments, or simply to achieve the light levels required by the lighting norms or standards. With the new scientific research of the last few decades that relates directly or indirectly...
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Electrochemically assisted deposition of hydroxyapatite on Ti6Al4V substrates covered by CVD diamond films — Coating characterization and first cell biological results
PublicationAlthough titaniumand its alloys are widely used as implant material for orthopedic and dental applications they show only limited corrosion stability and osseointegration in different cases. The aim of the presented research was to develop and characterize a novel surface modification system from a thin diamond base layer and a hydroxyapatite (HAp) top coating deposited on the alloy Ti6Al4V widely used for implants in contact with bone....
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The interaction between bacterial abundance and selected pollutants concentration levels in an arctic catchment (southwest Spitsbergen, Svalbard)
PublicationPersistent organic pollutants (POPs) have been a topic of interest in environmental sciences for > 60 years. POPs in the Arctic have been investigated since the 1970s, when first atmospheric measurements revealed the presence of these pollutants in the polar regions. Major contaminant transport routes to the Arctic include atmospheric and oceanic transport, as well as inflow from rivers and sea ice. The sources of pollutants, such...
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Marine and Cosmic Inspirations for AI Algorithms
PublicationArtificial Intelligence (AI) is a scientific area that currently sees an enormous growth. Various new algorithms and methods are developed and many of them meets practical, successful applications. Authors of new algorithms draw different inspirations. Probably the most common one is the nature. For example, Artificial Neural Networks were inspired by the structure of human brain and nervous system while the classic Genetic Algorithm...
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The relationship between standard reduction potentials of catechins and biological activities involved in redox control
PublicationRedox homeostasis involves factors that ensure proper function of cells. The excess reactive oxygen species (ROS) leads to oxidative stress and increased risk of oxidative damage to cellular components. In contrast, upon reductive stress, insufficient ROS abundance may result in faulty cell signalling. It may be expected that dietary antioxidants, depending on their standard reduction potentials (E°), will affect both scenarios....
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Electrochemical simulation of metabolic reduction and conjugation reactions of unsymmetrical bisacridine antitumor agents, C-2028 and C-2053
PublicationElectrochemistry (EC) coupled with analysis techniques such as liquid chromatography (LC) and mass spectrometry (MS) has been developed as a powerful tool for drug metabolism simulation. The application of EC in metabolic studies is particularly favourable due to the low matrix contribution compared to in vitro or in vivo biological models. In this paper, the EC(/LC)/MS system was applied to simulate phase I metabolism of the representative...
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Effects of Laser Remelting at Cryogenic Conditions on Microstructure and Wear Resistance of the Ti6Al4V Alloy Applied in Medicine
PublicationThe titanium and its alloys can be subjected to surface treatment, including laser treatment. In this work a new laser treatment at cryogenic conditions of Ti6Al4V alloy has been described. The work has been aimed at establishing whether such surface treatment could be suitable for implants working under wear in biological corrosive environment. The remelting has been made with the use of CO2 continuous work laser at laser power...
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Occurrence of Cyanobacteria in the Gulf of Gdańsk (2008–2009)
PublicationBlooms of cyanobacteria develop each summer in the Baltic Sea. Collecting complete data on this phenomenon is helpful in understanding the changes taking place in the Baltic Sea and forecasting the occurrence of these phenomena in the future. This dataset includes unpublished information about the occurrence of cyanobacteria in the Gulf of Gdańsk (Southern Baltic) in 2008 and 2009. The presented data combines basic physic-ochemical...
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Influence of configurations of the beds on contaminations removal in hybrid constructed wetlands.
PublicationThree hybrid constructed wetlands in configuration HF-VF-HF in Poland and one with another configuration VF-HF-Pond in Gremany were analysed. These hybrid constructed wetlands provide the second stage biological treatment. They are located in Pommerania region, in Sarbsk, Wiklino and Wieszyno, and their capacities are 29.7, 18.6 and 24.5 m3/day, respectively. The analysed system in Germany in Waizenfeld (Gemeinde Pommelsbrunn,...
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Biomimetic torene shells
PublicationThe genome inside the eukaryotic cells is guarded by a unique shell structure, called the nuclear envelope (NE), made of lipid membranes. This structure has an ultra torus topology with thousands of torus-shaped holes that imparts the structure a high flexural stiffness. Inspired from this biological design, here we present a novel ‘‘torene’’ architecture to design lightweight shell structures with ultra-stiffness for engineering...
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Graphene Production and Biomedical Applications: A Review
PublicationGraphene is a two-dimensional nanomaterial composed of carbon atoms with sp2 hybrid orbitals. Both graphene and graphene-based composite have gained broad interest among researchers because of their outstanding physiochemical, mechanical, and biological properties. Graphene production techniques are divided into top-down and bottom-up synthesis methods, of which chemical vapor deposition (CVD) is the most popular. The biomedical...
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Modern solutions in the field of microextraction using liquid as a medium of extraction
PublicationThe monitoring of compounds present in samples at trace/ultra-trace level usually requires a preliminary step of isolation and/or enrichment of analytes. Against, sample preparation is considered as crucial part of whole analytical procedures, in particular in samples characterized by complex matrices composition. Several new miniaturized extraction techniques is introduced and extensively applied to different type of samples....
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Strategies for Achieving Energy Neutrality in Biological Nutrient Removal Systems – a Case Study of the Slupsk WWTP (northern Poland)
PublicationThe paper presents a model-based evaluation of technological upgrades on the energy and cost balance in a large biological nutrient removal wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) in the city of Slupsk (northern Poland). The proposed upgrades include chemically enhanced primary sludge removal and reduction of the nitrogen load in the deammonification process employed for reject water treatment. Simulations enabled to estimate the increased...
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Evolution of artificial single-cell organisms foraging for resources in a 3-dimensional environment
PublicationForaging for resources is a simple cognitive task that even one-celled biological organisms can ac- complish. We present an Artificial Life system in which artificial unicellular organisms (animats) forage for food in a 3-dimensional simulated liquid environment. The movement of animats is controlled by evolving artificial gene regulatory networks encoded in linear genomes. When an animat consumes enough food, it produces offspring...
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Modern trends in solid phase extraction: New sorbent media
PublicationBased on the recently published literature, this review provides an update of the most important features and application of formats and devices employed in solid phase extraction (SPE). Special attention was paid on new trapping media proposed in SPE prior the chromatography analysis, based on the use of nanostructured materials, including carbon nanomaterials, electrospun nanofibers, dendrimes and magnetic nanoparticles, molecular...
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DO WE NEED NAVIER NUMBER? – FURTHER REMARKS AND COMPARISON WITH ANOTHER DIMENSIONLESS NUMBERS
PublicationThis paper presents a role of the Navier number (Na-dimensionless slip-length) in universal modelling of flow reported in micro- and nano-channels like: capillary biological flows, fuel cell systems, micro-electro-mechanical systems and nano-electro-mechanical systems. Similar to another bulk-like and surface-like dimensionless numbers, the Na number should be treated as a ratio of internal viscous to external viscous momentum...
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Spectral measurement of birefringence using particle swarm optimization analysis
PublicationThe measurement of birefringence is useful for the examination of both technical and biological objects. One of the main problems is that the polarization state of light in birefringent media changes periodically. Without the knowledge of the period number, the birefringence of a given medium cannot be determined reliably. We propose to analyse the spectrum of light in order to determine the birefringence. We use a Particle Swarm...
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Synthesis of disubstituted 1,3,4,9-tetrahydropyrano-[3,4-b]indole-1-acetic acids derivatives
Publication1,3,4,9-tetrahydropyrano[3,4-b ]indole-1-acetic acid derivatives are of interest for pharmaceutical research as a core structure for synthesis of biological active substance - Etodolac (selective Cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitor, which belongs to the Non-steroidal Anti-inflammatory Drug, NSAID, that shows a clin-ically effective analgesic and anti-inflammatory activity). Here the way of synthesis of two 1,3,4,9-tetrahydropyrano[3,4-b...
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Influence of nitrogen and organic matter fractions on wastewater treatment in treatment wetland
PublicationMunicipal wastewater contains both biodegradable and non-degradable pollutants. Moreover, they are present in dissolved, colloidal and particulate forms. These fractions are characterised by various decomposition rates, hence their bioavailability during microbial respiration. It was confirm that biological degradation rate in terms of COD reduction is influenced by particle size speciation. Therefore, the objective of the study...
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Strategies for achieving energy neutrality in biological nutrient removal systems - a case study of the Slupsk WWTP (northern Poland)
PublicationThe paper presents a model-based evaluation of technological upgrades on the energy and cost balance in a large biological nutrient removal wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) in the city of Slupsk (northern Poland). The proposed upgrades include chemically enhanced primary sludge removal and reduction of the nitrogen load in the deammonification process employed for reject water treatment. Simulations enabled to estimate the increased...
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Modeling the Structure, Dynamics, and Transformations of Proteins with the UNRES Force Field
PublicationThe physics-based united-residue (UNRES) model of proteins ( www.unres.pl ) has been designed to carry out large-scale simulations of protein folding. The force field has been derived and parameterized based on the principles of statistical-mechanics, which makes it independent of structural databases and applicable to treat nonstandard situations such as, proteins that contain D-amino-acid residues. Powered by Langevin dynamics...
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Development of an Analytical Protocol for Determination of Cyanide in Human Biological Samples Based on Application of Ion Chromatography with Pulsed Amperometric Detection
PublicationA simple and accurate ion chromatography (IC) method with pulsed amperometric detection (PAD) was proposed for the determination of cyanide ion in urine, sweat, and saliva samples. The sample pretreatment relies on alkaline digestion and application of Dionex OnGuard II H cartridge. Under the optimized conditions, the method showed good linearity in the range of 1–100 μg/L for urine, 5–100 μg/L for saliva, and 3–100 μg/L for sweat...
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Application of deep eutectic solvents in bioanalysis
PublicationThe application of deep eutectic solvents (DESs) is sharply surging as a green alternative to conventional solvents due to their unique properties in terms of simplicity of preparation, designability and low cost. A great deal of attention has been paid to the application of these green solvents in analytical chemistry in recent years, and a lot of interesting work has been reported. This review summarizes the most relevant applications...
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The effect of Sr and Mg substitutions on structure, mechanical properties and solubility of fluorapatite ceramics for biomedical applications
PublicationIonic substitutions play important role in the modifications of biological apatites. Recently, attention has been focused on the co-doping effects on the functional properties of apatite-based biomaterials. In this research work, the dense samples of fluorapatites, Ca10(PO4)6F2 and Ca8MgSr(PO4)6F2, were produced after sintering at 1250 °C for 6 h in air. Structural characterization carried out with XRD, IR, Raman and SEM, confirmed...
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A Simple Replica Method as the Way to Obtain a Morphologically and Mechanically Bone-like Iron-Based Biodegradable Material
PublicationPorous iron-based scaffolds were prepared by the simple replica method using polyurethane foam as a template and applying the sintering process in a tube furnace. Their surface morphology was characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and phase homogeneity was confirmed using X-ray diffraction (XRD). Corrosion behavior was determined using immersion and potentiodynamic polarization methods in phosphate buffered saline...
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Towards Cancer Patients Classification Using Liquid Biopsy
PublicationLiquid biopsy is a useful, minimally invasive diagnostic and monitoring tool for cancer disease. Yet, developing accurate methods, given the potentially large number of input features, and usually small datasets size remains very challenging. Recently, a novel feature parameterization based on the RNA-sequenced platelet data which uses the biological knowledge from the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes, combined with a classifier...
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Offshore surface waters of Antarctica are free of microplastics, as revealed by a circum-Antarctic study
PublicationIn 2018, during a circum navigation of Antarctica below 62° S by the sailing boat Katharsis II, the presence of plastics was investigated with surface sampling nets at ten evenly spaced locations (every 36° of longitude). Although fibres that appeared to be plastic (particles up to 2 cm) were found in numbers ranging from 1 particle (0.002 particles per m3) to 171 particles (1.366 particles per m3) per station, a Fourier-transform...
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State of the art and prospects of methods for determination of lipophilicity of chemical compounds
PublicationLipophilicity of the compounds is useful to (i) explain their distribution in biological systems, which is different in plant and in animal organisms, (ii) predict the possible pathways of pollutant transport in the environment, and (iii) support drug discovery process and select optimal composition in terms of bioactivity and bioavailability. The lipophilic properties can be determined by two main approaches, experimental, which...
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Quantum Coherence as a Resource
PublicationThe coherent superposition of states, in combination with the quantization of observables, represents one of the most fundamental features that mark the departure of quantum mechanics from the classical realm. Quantum coherence in many-body systems embodies the essence of entanglement and is an essential ingredient for a plethora of physical phenomena in quantum optics, quantum information, solid state physics, and nanoscale thermodynamics....
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The gaseous messenger carbon monoxide is released from the eye into the ophthalmic venous blood depending on the intensity of sunlight
PublicationCircadian and seasonal rhythms in daylight affect many physiological processes. In the eye, energy of intense visible light not only initiates a well-studied neural reaction in the retina that modulates the secretory function of the hypothalamus and pineal gland, but also activates the heme oxygenase (HO) to produce carbon monoxide (CO). This study was designed to determine whether the concentration of carbon monoxide (CO) in the...
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Chemical and biological stability of polyene macrolides
PublicationThe polyene macrolide antibiotics have been used in an-tifungal therapy since first o f them were discovered in 1950's. Up to now, four polyene macrolides are being used in medical practice, namely amphotericin B, nystatin, candi-cidin and pimaricin.The antifungal activity and mode of ac-tion of polyene macrolides is determined by their structure, chemical and physical properties.The main fragment of polyene...
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Partial characterization of three Korean white lotus cultivars
PublicationThe nutritional and bioactive values of Korean white lotus cultivars (Muan, Chungyang, and Garam)extracted with methanol, water, and acetone solvents were evaluated by the contents of their bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity determined by ABTS, CUPRAC, FRAP, DPPH, and β-carotene-linoleic acid assays. HPLC, fluorometry, and FTIR spectroscopy were employed for evaluation of polyphenols and fatty acids. All lotus cultivar...
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The exposure to UV filters: Prevalence, effects, possible molecular mechanisms of action and interactions within mixtures
PublicationSubstances that can absorb sunlight and harmful UV radiation such as organic UV filters are widely used in cosmetics and other personal care products. Since humans use a wide variety of chemicals for multiple purposes it is common for UV filters to co-occur with other substances either in human originating specimens or in the environment. There is increasing interest in understanding such co-occurrence in form of potential synergy, antagonist,...
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Recent Issues and Challenges in the Study of Inland Waters
PublicationThis paper addresses several important problems and methods related to studies of inland waters based on the existing scientific literature. The use of UAVs in freshwater monitoring is described, including recent contact and non-contact solutions. Due to a decline in biological diversity in many parts of the globe, the main threats are described together with a modern method for algae and cyanobacteria monitoring utilizing chlorophyll...
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Molecularly imprinted polymers based on deep eutectic solvents as a greenest materials for selective extraction of emerging contaminants from complex samples
PublicationSome of the reagents applied in the synthesis of molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) may impact on health and the environment. Thus, a new generation of promising green chemicals are nowadays introduced and investigated, including deep eutectic solvents (DESs). DESs seems to be a reasonable choice as they are characterized as non-toxic, low cost, easy to prepare and biodegradable chemicals. This review presents the information...
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Synthesis and biological evaluation of novel analogues of batracylin with synthetic amino acids and adenosine: an unexpected effect on centromere segregation in tumor cells through a dual inhibition of topoisomerase IIa and Aurora B
PublicationIn the search for new anticancer agents we designed and synthesized batracylin derivatives with linking synthetic amino acid side chains of different lengths and adenosine. Unexpectedly, we have found that in water and the culture media adenosine–amino acid–BAT conjugates form supramolecular structures and this prevents these compounds from entering cells. Consequently, these compounds exerted no biological activity when tested...
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Types of wear and tear of biomaterials used in orthopaedic surgery
PublicationPurpose of this paper is presentation of observations on different kinds of wear and tear of biomaterials used in contemporary orthopaedic surgery. Types of prosthesis damage, encountered in medical practice, and their causes have been described. Results of many clinical studies were analysed to review prosthesis damage from the stage of implanting (such as intrusion of a foreign object between its components) to their natural...
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Application of magnetic nanoparticles for magnetic solid-phase extraction in preparing biological, environmental and food samples
PublicationThe need to obtain meaningful results as the basis for determining the content of trace amounts of analytes has become the driving force behind the development of modern analytical techniques, including sample-preparation techniques, such as solid-phase extraction (SPE). Recently, great interest was aroused in the use of magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) in SPE. These materials exhibit high selectivity, and, in small amounts, can provide...
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Removal of Pharmaceutically Active Compounds in Sequencing Batch Reactor
PublicationIn recent years, considerable attention was paid to the presence of organic micro-pollutants such as Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (API) in the aquatic environment due to their negative impact on public health and aquatic ecosystems. Numerous papers have pointed out API presence as common constituents of effluents from Wastewater Treatment Plants (WWTPs). This is the result of various efficiencies of API removal by conventional...
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3D porous graphene-based structures- synthesis and applications
PublicationPorous carbon-based materials are of the great industrial and academic interest due to their high surface area, low density, good electrical conductivity, chemical inertness and low cost of fabrication. Up to now, the main approach to obtain porous carbon structures has involved the pyrolysis of carbonaceous natural or synthetic precursors. After the isolation of graphene, the interest in 3D porous graphene-based structures (called...
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Green Aspects of Miniaturized Sample Preparation Techniques
PublicationCorrect monitoring and control of the state of the environment and scientific research on the subject of environmental protection often require that determinations of compounds present at very low concentrations be made in samples characterized by a matrix of complex composition (e.g., biological samples, water and soil samples). Moreover, due to the limited number of analytical techniques which are sufficiently sensitive to conduct...
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Determination of isoprostanes in exhaled breath condensate samples by liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry
PublicationOxidative stress (OS) is a state of imbalance between continuously generating reactive oxygen species (ROS) during normal cell metabolism and mechanism of detoxifying oxygen radicals through a network of antioxidative enzymes. Isoprostanes are prostaglandin -like substances that are produced in vivo primarily by free radical-induced peroxidation of arachidonic acid. The measurement of isoprostanes in biological fluids and/or tissue...
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Computational methods for calculation of binding free energy for ligand-receptor complexes
PublicationAccurate description of the molecular complexes energetic influence is required for understanding of many biological functions carried out by proteins. Therefore, estimation of binding free energy for ligand-receptor complexes is of highest importance for structure-based ligand design and drug discovery approaches.Experimental methods of determination of difference in Gibbs'es free energy have many limitations. Thus, computational...
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Pilot study of the influence of thermoplastic starch based polymer packaging material on the growth of diatom population in sea water environment
PublicationNovel polymeric packaging materials susceptible to environmentally friendly decomposition appeared on the global market. The paper is devoted to an investigation of the impact of degradable polymer packaging on marine life. The chosen polymer was a commercial packaging based on thermoplastic starch (TPS over 85%). The microorganism chosen was Phaeodactylum tricornutum diatom (identified in many aquatic reservoirs, with a tendency...
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New Analogues of Mycophenolic Acid
PublicationMycophenolic acid (MPA) possesses antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, immunosuppressive and anticancer properties. It is a non-competitive and reversible inhibitor of dehydrogenase inosine-5'-monophosphate (IMPDH). This compound belongs to the immunosuppressive drugs used for the prevention of both acute and chronic transplant rejection. Until now, two derivatives of MPA have been used clinically: mycophenolate mofetil (MMF,...
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Synthesis and biological evaluation of N-acylated tyramine sulfamates containing C-F bonds as steroid sulfatase inhibitors
PublicationSteroid sulfatase (STS) is responsible for the hydrolysis of biologically inactive sulfated steroids into their active un-sulfated forms and promotes the growth of various hormone-dependent cancers (e.g., breast cancer). Therefore, the STS enzyme is a promising therapeutic target for the treatment of steroid-sensitive cancers. Herein, we report the synthesis and biological evaluation of sulfamate analogs as potential STS inhibitors...
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Modeling hydrolysis of slowly biodegradable organic compounds in biological nutrient removal activated sludge systems
PublicationHydrolysis is an important process in biological wastewater treatment and has been known as the rate limiting step in organic carbon removal from municipal or industrial wastewater. The biodegradation of XS is initiated by hydrolysis which is an integral part of activated sludge models, such as the Activated Sludge Model no. 2d (ASM2d). The aim of this study was to evaluate different concepts of modeling the hydrolysis process...
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A novel method of creating thermoplastic chitosan blends to produce cell scaffolds by FDM additive manufacturing
PublicationDue to its remarkable and promising biological and structural properties, chitosan has been widely studied in several potential applications in the biomedical sector. Attempts are being made to use this polymer and its properties in thermoplastics dedicated to 3D printing in FDM technology. However, chitosan can be processed only from acid solution, which limits its applications. The paper presents a new path for the production...
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Unconventional and user-friendly sampling techniques of semi-volatile organic compounds present in an indoor environment: An approach to human exposure assessment
PublicationThe commonly applied solutions used to assess the potential risk of human exposure to semi-volatile organic compounds (SVOCs) are based on the investigation of biological samples collected in an invasive or non-invasive manner. For SVOCs, which are typically introduced to humans through the respiratory system, dermal adsorption, or digestive system, sampling solutions generally used in the indoor environments are classified as...
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Novel amides of mycophenolic acid and some heterocyclic derivatives as immunosuppressive agents
PublicationThe group of new amide derivatives of mycophenolic acid (MPA) and selected heterocyclic amines was synthesised as potential immunosuppressive agents functioning as inosine-5'-monophosphate dehydrogenase (IMPDH) uncompetitive inhibitors. The synthesis employed uronium-type activating system (TBTU/HOBt/DIPEA) while or phosphonic acid anhydride method (T3P/Py) facilitating amides to be obtained in moderate to excellent yields without...